Apple started shipping the second generation iPod Shuffles. I already had the first generation, and the only real difference is the size of the unit. Most the features are basically the same. I figured size and the aluminum enclosure was a good enough reason to get the new one. Besides it gives me an excuse to write another post for this site. The new iPod Shuffle comes in only one size, 1GB, which Apple says is about 240 songs. I was able to put 263 songs in my real world use. At $79, I found that the iPod Shuffle was very reasonable in price.

This morning Apple quietly released a 1GB iPod Nano for $149, making their latest music player more accessible to the public price wise. Still capable of holding a good amount of songs (~240 songs) it has the same physical size as the other 2GB and 4GB iPod Nano models and is available in both black and white. Along with this release Apple has reduced the prices of the iPod Shuffles $30 dropping them to $69 and $99 for the 512MB and 1GB models, respectively.

I bought the iPod Nano the first day it was released to the Apple Store. To my surprise, on its initial launch they seemed to have a decent supply. I did not have to be put in a waiting list like some of the Apple products I had purchased in the past. I picked up the black 4GB model and even at the time of purchase seemed to be the most popular model of the four. After using it for a few months now, there are some things I really like about the product and other things that I don’t seem to care for too much.

The iPod Shuffle was purchased in January after it was released at Macworld. The nice thing about the unit is I can carry it everywhere I go. I have had other iPods in the past and they aren’t too big to carry around but it would never be an everyday item. With the shuffle I can always keep a small collection of music with me at all times. Like the other iPods, this unit grabs scratches as well. I don’t care too much about the scratches so I do not have a case for it. My Nano on the other hand, could have used a case.